Private Tour
London's Hidden Gems and Secret History Private Guided Tour
Overview
Available languages
Mobile ticket
Leave the regular tourist trail behind and get immersed in the hidden secrets of the London's rich past with your own personal Guide.
A private and bespoke walk through 2000 years of London's history at your pace. No strict schedules or herding about, a bespoke tour just for you.
This tour is ideal for those who want to get off the usual visitor routes and discover the gems that many people miss -
Ancients buildings, Dickensian Alleys, Hidden Courts, Church Crypts, Secret Routes, and of course London's most atmospheric
Inn's, Taverns and Pubs, some dating back over 600 years!
Go on an adventure with your own local guide, a sense of curiosity greatly encouraged!. Your guide is passionate about making this a truly personal and memorable tour.
**Children under 16 Go FREE when accompanied by paying adults - (Max 4 Children)**
Additional Info
Infants and small children can ride in a pram or stroller
Service animals allowed
Public transportation options are available nearby
Suitable for all physical fitness levels
Moderate walking - Please inform if you have any mobility issues
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
What‘s Included
Hotel pickup and drop-off
Private tour
Professional guide
Food and drinks
What To Expect
Starting at Temple Station let's get away from the main tourist routes and go in search of the hidden alleys, ancient taverns, church crypts, Roman pavements and places you would have a lot of difficulty finding on your own. Crossing over into the old City of London where the street layouts go back as far a Roman times, you will first be taken into the Inns of Court, a hidden world used by the legal profession, and a haven not usually visited by most tourists. Let me show you the place where Shakespeare first performed Twelfth Night, the Fountain that inspired Charles Dickens, and the English Headquarters of the Knights Templar. Do you like Tea? let me take you to a shop where they have sold Tea for over 300 years.
St Bride's Church
The tour continues avoiding the main road and slipping through ancient passageways like Hanging Sword Alley until we arrive at St Bride's Church. Often called 'The Cathedral of The Press' due to its long association with the Fleet Street Newspapers. Damaged in The Great Fire of London and remodeled by Sir Christopher Wren, it suffered another blow in WW2 when a bomb destroyed the roof. However, this gave Archaeologists the chance to look deep into the crypts. What they found was amazing. Let me show you a hidden medieval chapel, charred remains from the Great fire of 1666, and Roman Pavements in this little known Crypt Museum. The Church has another claim to fame, I will tell you all about it on the tour.
Options
Tour For 4-6 People
Private walking tour of London's hidden and secret history away from the regular tourist trail for 4-6 People. Private, bespoke and at your pace.(**Children Under 16 Go Free When Accompanied** Max 2)
Tour For ONE Person
Private walking tour of London's hidden and secret history away from the regular tourist trail for One Person. Private, bespoke and at your pace.(**Children Under 16 Go Free When Accompanied** Max 2)
Tour For TWO People
Private walking tour of London's hidden and secret history away from the regular tourist trail for Two People. Private, bespoke and at your pace.(**Children Under 16 Go Free When Accompanied** Max 2)
Tour For THREE People
Private walking tour of London's hidden and secret history away from the regular tourist trail for THREE people. Private, bespoke and at your pace **Children Under 16 Go Free When Accompanied** Max 4
Reviews
7 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Enjoyed tour
Kent P,
Aug 14, 2025
- Review from Viator
5.00Excellent tour of places of interest not commonly shown. Richard was Well informed and presented well.
Fantastic tour with even better guide
Mike H,
Aug 20, 2024
- Review from Viator
5.00Richard was incredibly knowledgeable of the history of London and the buildings and people who made up the history. It was the perfect tour if you are wanting to go deeper into the past and have seen the typical places. We learned so much more than just surface level history and were able to go to places we had never seen before. Richard was great about tailoring the content to our group as well. Only hitting the high points on things we were less interested in but going deeper on things we wanted to learn more about.
Amazing Old City of London and Dickens Stories Engagingly Revealed
RobertG J,
Jul 16, 2024
- Review from Viator
5.00Amazingly revelatory of London history most richly from Dickens, but inclusive of Conan Doyle's Holmes, Melville, Franklin, and Burr. Archeological insights into Roman Londinium afforded by German bombs dropped on a picturesque church in WWII, much insight into Dickens' sources for 'A Christmas Carol': plausibly, the corner where the massive turkey might have been hung on Christmas day, the door knocker where Marley appeared, the home where Scrooge was imagined to have dwelled, the counting house; autobiographical facts for 'David Copperfield,' Dickens' favorite tavern, Richard, the tour's guide, is simply a fountain of delightful information for any fan of mid 19th century English literature/life and old London city history. I've hardly ever spend a more engaging 3 hours than these and would do it again tomorrow! Again, Richard is a peerless tour guide. Highly, highly recommended.
Richard is Amazing!
carrollw955,
May 14, 2024
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00Other couple canceled so we got Richard all to ourselves. He was marvelous and with our being fans of Dickens, Shakespeare and London's history, he wove for us our own tour personalizing it to what we were most interested in. Richard is incredible - very smart, great personality and sense of humor. We thoroughly enjoyed our time with him and are still raving about this experience to all our friends 5 months later! We are sending them all his way for their trips this year to London, and we ourselves shall book him again when we return this December! Having been born in London and lived there, then moved to USA I couldn't believe the things I never knew and had never seen -- he is a treasure trove and all his well-known subjects about literature, history, EVERYTHING all overlap and contribute to -- when the end of the tour arrives you literally don't want to say goodbye. What a fabulous experience! Cheers, Richard!
My husband and I had a fabulous experience with Richard. The other couple canceled so we had him all to ourselves!
carrollw955,
May 14, 2024
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00The other couple canceled so we had Richard all to ourselves. We are avid fans of Dickens and Shakespeare and London History and he weaved it all into a tour that we are still raving about 5 months later! Being born in London and having lived there and then moved to the US I was astonished at the places and things of which I had been unaware. It is true that one could spend a whole year in London and still not see everything, but being on a tour with Richard at the helm is a wonderful start! We enjoyed every minute from meeting him at Temple Station until we said farewell at the house he believes was the inspiration for where Scrooge lived in A Christmas Carol. I cannot rave enough about Richard, his knowledge, his great personality and sense of humor. We are sending all our friends who visit his contact info/website and we will definitely look him up when we are back in town later this year in 2024. Cheers Richard!!
Richard’s secret history tour is a must for London and Dickens lovers!
Clasina H,
Jun 23, 2022
- Review from Viator
5.00Richard is very knowledgeable on the entire area… we loved it, what a great knowledge of Dickens snd courts. We will be back for another tour with him and surely recommend Richard, very very pleasant and enjoyable guide who knows the hidden places. We have been to London over 100 times, but 90 percent of what he showed us was new to us! Well done Richard 👍
Richard of Richard Tours conducted...
theresa c,
Jun 7, 2018
- Review from Viator
5.00Richard of Richard Tours conducted this tour for us. He met us at our hotel and we began our walking tour of London. Many of the sights we were shown were hidden and we could have never found them on our own. Richard had many interesting stories to tell along the way. The tour does require quite a bit of walking but comfort stops could be made along the way. We highly recommend this tour as given by Richard.
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